Circle Becomes the First EU-Regulated Stablecoin Issuer as USDC and EURC Gain MiCA Compliance

Circle, the company behind the widely-used USD Coin (USDC), has become the first stablecoin issuer in the European Union to gain regulatory approval

Stablecoin issuer Circle has become the first company to gain regulatory approval for its digital fiat tokens in the European Union.

The USD Coin (USDC) and Euro Coin (EURC) stablecoins are now fully compliant with the new Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulatory framework, effective immediately.

This news comes as a relief to investors who were concerned that they would need to redeem their stablecoins or transfer funds to other digital assets to remain compliant with the new regulations.

As part of its European expansion, Circle has chosen France as its headquarters, thanks to the country’s progressive stance on digital asset regulation and its established relationship with French regulators.

Coralie Billmann, previously the Chief Operating Officer of Europe for 3S Money and a board member of the same firm, has been appointed to lead Circle’s French operations.

Back in March, the Boston-based firm filed applications to become both a licensed Electronic Money Institution and a registered Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP).

That requires approval from the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), followed by clearance from the country’s top regulator, the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel et de Résolution (ACPR).

France is now moving ahead with its plans to tighten regulation, supervision and oversight of cryptocurrency companies.

“The entire concept of fiat digital currency did not really even exist outside of very early crypto circles. The concept of seeing major global laws that enshrined stablecoins into the financial system was inconceivable,” said Jeremy Allaire, co-founder and CEO of Circle.

Several exchanges have announced changes to their stablecoin policies and product offerings in preparation for the MiCA regulatory shift.

Crypto exchange and custodial platform Uphold announced the delisting of six stablecoins for its European users in June: Tether (USDT), Dai (DAI), TrueUSD (TUSD), Gemini dollar (GUSD), Pax dollar (USDP), and Frax Protocol (FRAX).

Bitstamp also delisted Tether’s EURT stablecoin despite being one of the first exchanges to list the digital fiat token.

Binance has adopted a “sell-only” strategy for certain stablecoin products in the European market, opting to label fiat equivalents as either compliant or non-compliant and limiting certain market features for European customers, rather than delisting stablecoins outright.

The above is the detailed content of Circle Becomes the First EU-Regulated Stablecoin Issuer as USDC and EURC Gain MiCA Compliance. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!